植物类Caspase及其调控细胞程序性死亡的研究进展

植物细胞程序性死亡（PCD）在植物生长发育和逆境适应中发挥重要作用。半胱氨酸蛋白酶（caspase）调控动物PcD的启动、执行及信号转导。通过人工合成底物、动物caspase抑制剂等方法已证实在植物中存在类caspase，可分为metacas．pases、VPEs（vacuolar processing enzymes）和saspases等。本文综述了植物类caspase的种类、结构、定位、功能及其调控PCD的研究进展，提出植物PCD中类caspase作用的调控途径，为深入研究植物PCD提供参考。

Progress in Caspase-Like Proteases and Their Regulatory Roles in Pro- grammed Cell Death in Plants

Programmed cell death （PCD） plays an important role in the development and adaptation of plants under different environmental stresses. Cysteine-aspartic acid proteases （caspase） are responsible for initiating, executing and signal transduction of animal PCD. The existence of caspase-like proteases has been also demon- strated experimentally in plants by the applications of artificial synthesized substrates and inhibitors of caspase. Caspase-like proteases can be divided into three classes including metacaspases, vacuolar processing enzymes （VPEs） and saspases. In the paper, the progresses of the types, structures, locations, functions of caspase-like proteases and their regulatory roles in plant PCD are reviewed. Subsequently, a regulatory pathway of caspaselike proteases in plant PCD is also suggested. It can support a new insight into further study of caspase-like proteases and their effects in plant PCD